The wildest, most thrilling roller coaster in the world isn't in California, Ohio, Texas or Florida. It is located in Nevada and it was designed and built by a Utah company.
The Buffalo Bill's new $10 million Desperado coaster that opened here last fall tops them all - even those at California's Six Flags Magic Mountain.Why? This coaster, currently the tallest and fastest in the world, leaves the casino and climbs through the roof en route to a record 225-foot heart-stopping drop at 83 mph. (In contrast, Lagoon's Fire Dragon drops 85 feet and hits 55 mph; its wooden coaster falls 45 feet and goes 45 mph.)
Located about 30 miles southwest of Las Vegas, next to the California-Nevada line, the Desperado doesn't usually have a big waiting line, but finding a vacant parking place out in front can be difficult. (There are plenty of rear parking spaces, though.)
This roller coaster, located 470 miles from Salt Lake City, was designed and built by Arrow Dynamics, a Utah company based in Clearfield's Freeport Center.
According to Ronald Toomer, chairman of Arrow, the Desperado's drop is akin to a fall from 22-story building. He also said the coaster goes slightly below ground and so its outside height is actually a little shorter than its total 225-foot drop.
Desperado riders must be at least 48 inches tall. It costs $4 per ride.
I was skeptical of the Desperado at first - especially when I saw that hats, eyeglasses and even hearing aids were meticulously required to be removed and left in a cupboard at the start of my ride last spring.
"These ride operators are sure overreacting," I thought. "It can't be that wild."
But that first drop was a bigger thrill than parasailing or anything else I've ever done. Naturally, I had to take a seat in one of the rear cars - always the wildest ride on any coaster for speed and whiplash. Eyeglasses, hearing aids and loose objects would probably fly off during this ride.
All I could do was sit there, pinned by the G-forces to the padded chair as it plummeted 22 stories straight down(225-feet). I couldn't believe how rough and fast the ride was. Only later did I realize my elbows had been slightly bruised during that first plunge. While there was plenty of padding for the head and torso, free-roaming elbows are not so cushioned.
The second plunge on the 5,843-foot-long ride is only 155 feet, but it's a spiral drop and as fast as the ride races into a tunnel later on, it's also frightening with the low-hanging rocks overhead.
Photographs of riders are also available at the end of the ride for an additional charge.
This three-minute ride isn't for everyone, but my 6- and 9-year-old boys, Steven and Roger, were begging to do the ride again on the return trip from California. Luckily for me it was closed at the time due to high winds and so they settled for a ride on the adjacent (also Utah-built) log flume.
It's one thing to do this coaster when you feel sure it can't be all that wild. But a second ride would take some psyching up first. (I bet riding it in the dark of the evening is an even more thrilling event.)
The Desperado is open (weather permitting) Monday through Thursday from 10 a.m. until 10 p.m. and Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. until 11 p.m.
As it turns out, Arrow Dynamics has designed and built some of the west's other premier roller coasters and also most log flume rides. (See the accompanying charts for Arrow's creations.)
Toomer said he's still hopeful Lagoon will someday have one of his giant coaster rides. Currently, the Log Flume is Arrow's only creation at Lagoon.
- Amusement Business Magazine recently ranked the nation's top 10 roller coasters, but it only rated the Desperado No. 8.
Given the Desperado's world-record speed and height, the three steel coasters ranked ahead of it on the list appear questionable. It may be a case of the magazine's rankings favoring the roller rides in the eastern United States.
The four wooden coasters that ranked ahead of the Desperado are all from Texas eastward, and I haven't taken a ride on any of them either. I agree some "woodies" may be superior to steel rides. For example, at Lagoon I believe the wooden coaster is more exciting than the metal Fire Dragon - especially when comparing rear seat rides. However, for thrill based on pure speed and freefall, I bet the Desperado is unchallenged worldwide.
After visiting Six Flags, Disneyland, Buffalo Bill's, Knott's Berry Farm, Silverwood and Lagoon - all this spring - here's my personal, "pure thrill" ranking of the roller coasters in the West from the wildest to the more tame.
(Excluded from this list - since I haven't ridden on them yet - are several coasters at Paramount's Great America in Santa Clara, Calif.; the acclaimed Big Dipper wooden coaster on the boardwalk at Santa Cruz; the indoor coasters at Circus Circus and the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, and Knott's Berry Farm's new "Jaquar," which had not yet opened by spring.)
By strict dictionary definition, a roller coaster is "An amusement ride in which small, open cars move on tracks that dip and curve sharply." Thus, even the Disneyland's Matterhorn fits that description.
- THE REGION'S WILDEST ROLLER COASTERS:
1. Desperado, Buffalo Bill's Casino, Stateline, Nev.*
2. Viper, Six Flags Magic Mountain, Calif.*
3. Batman the Ride, Six Flags Magic Mountain.
4. Ninja, Six Flags Magic Mountain.*
5. Flashback, Six Flags Magic Mountain.
6. Boomerang, Knott's Berry Farm, Calif.
7. Space Mountain, Disneyland.
8. Montezooma's Revenge, Knott's Berry Farm.
9. Revolution, Six Flags Magic Mountain.
10. Colossus, Six Flags Magic Mountain.
11. Psyclone, Six Flags Magic Mountain.
12. Wooden Roller Coaster, Lagoon.
13. The Fire Dragon, Lagoon.
14. Matterhorn, Disneyland.*
15. Jet Star 2, Lagoon.
16. Corkscrew, Silverwood, Athol, Idaho.*
17. Gold Rusher, Six Flags Magic Mountain.*
18. Thunder Mountain Railroad, Disneyland.
* Designed and built by Utah's Arrow Dynamics Co.
- LOG FLUME RIDES
Many thrill-seekers also love to splash and get wet in warm weather, and nothing fits that bill better than log flume rides. (Rapids rides would be a separate category.) Here's a separate ranking of the best log flume rides in the West:
1. Log Flume, Knott's Berry Farm, Calif. (Short lines, inexpensive photographs available and babies can ride with parents. It features a rustic, mining theme.)*
2. Splash Mountain, Disneyland. (Longest vertical drop of any log flume and the best decorations too, but has long lines.)
3. Log Jammer, Six Flags Magic Mountain, Calif. (Contains two large dropoffs and babies can ride with parents, but there are no decorations.)*
4. Jet Stream, Six Flags. (Uses a jet boat style craft and yet otherwise fits the log flume theme. Features a 57-foot plunge and some fast log speeds.)*
5. Log Flume, Lagoon. (Short and simple, but has a good dropoff and fits well into the Pioneer Village theme area.)*
6. Log Flume, Silverwood, Athol, Idaho. (Simple, but usually has short lines. Logs move extremely fast.)*
7. Log Flume, Buffalo Bill's Casino, Nev. (Mostly indoors with a few decorations. Costs $3 per person with a 42-inch minimum height to ride.)*
* Designed and built by Utah's Arrow Dynamics Co.